NOS Football•yesterday, 2:39 PM•Amended yesterday, 7:37 PM
Jordan Henderson, Kian Fitz-Jim, Wout Weghorst and Bertrand Traoré did not travel with Ajax to the Czech Republic for the Europa League match against Slavia Prague. Due to the list of absentees, 18-year-old talents Jan Faberski and Don-Angelo Konadu make their first appearance in the European selection.
Trainer Francesco Farioli commented on that news at a press conference. “We lost Fitz-Jim and Traoré in training this morning. Fitz-Jim has a muscle injury that we have to investigate and Traoré took a knock.”
In any case, Farioli expects Henderson back soon. “He has a muscle problem, but it doesn’t appear to be a serious injury.” In the absence of the English midfielder, goalkeeper Remko Pasveer will be captain tomorrow.
Ajax misses an important quartet in Prague: ‘Bad luck, but that’s football’
Farioli did everything he could to keep his group fit. He rotated heavily this weekend against RKC Waalwijk (0-2 win) and Henderson, Fitz-Jim, Traoré and Mika Godts started on the bench. Only the latter will be there tomorrow.
“The rotation has to do with where we come from,” Farioli explains. “There were a lot of injuries last year and it took a long time for players to recover. And you want all players to be part of the process.”
The talent Konadu a Faberski
With Konadu and Faberski, Farioli adds two new players to his group. The Pole Faberski is a right winger, who is sometimes also used on the left. Konadu is a striker.
“Faberski has already trained with the first team several times,” says Farioli. “Konadu was there in the preparation, but because we have a lot of strikers in the selection, there was little room for him. He is a very talented player and we think we can use him.”
Opponent Slavia Prague has started the season strongly. Especially at home, they rarely lose: seven of the last eight European home games were won. Farioli: “They play forward very quickly. They are also physically very strong. It will be a hot evening.”
Farioli is impressed by Slavia coach Jindrich Trpisovsky, who has been with the club for six years. “They have a clear idea of how to play football and are innovative. When they once played against Barcelona at Camp Nou at Camp Nou, I was struck by how they defended, with a defensive block of six players very high up on the pitch.”
Klaassen is along
Davy Klaassen will travel to Prague, but is not allowed to play. He was signed after the transfer market closed and is not registered for European football.
Farioli would like to have him train in the run-up to the Premier League match against FC Groningen next Sunday.
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